was like an expression of a desire nestled deep within him, too. I want to go back. Yes, perhaps so. Maybe some part of him had been wishing for this all along. I want to go back. To go back. But go back where? They didn’t have anywhere to return to. They didn’t remember such a place. There was nowhere to return to. “It wants to go home one more time… It’s an Eighty-Six. And unlike us, he’s the kind who can still remember his home and family.” This Eighty-Six was probably older than them, or maybe they simply didn’t survive long enough as a Processor to have their memories burned away by the fires of war. Either way, this Löwe wanted to return to that place so badly that even after its death, it was trying to drag its broken, shattered body in an attempt to go back. But in the end, it couldn’t get there. There was nowhere to return to, and so in the end…he was no different than Raiden and the rest. An Eighty-Six cast out to the battlefield, where he was forced to live and fated to die. An Eighty-Six who didn’t belong anywhere except the battlefield. And so… You slipped out of camp and came all the way here for a mechanical ghost of someone you don’t even know? Raiden scratched his head, half-exasperated. If so, there wasn’t much else Raiden could say. Not to this Headless Reaper who took on the duty of collecting the comrades who died along the way, remembering them and carrying them with him to his final destination… “That doesn’t make up for the fact that you up and left without saying anything. Dumbass…,” Raiden grumbled at him. “My bad,” Shin said. But he didn’t say he regretted it, which Raiden begrudgingly admitted to himself was typical of Shin. Even as they spoke, Shin kept his gaze fixed on the Löwe. Raiden narrowed his eyes dubiously. It couldn’t be, but… “You’re not thinking of taking him along, are you?” “No, I can’t manage that. I don’t know his name or anything about him.” Shin could hear the Legion’s voices, but he couldn’t communicate with them. Like Shin just said, all he could hear was the unintelligible rustling of a mechanical intellect or a constant repetition of the dead’s last thoughts before their life came to an end. He couldn’t communicate with any of them, not Page 186 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
even Shepherds, who retained the memories and mental faculties they had in life. That said, if Shin knew even as little as just this person’s name, he would have been hell-bent on taking them along even if they were a Legion. In fact, Raiden could never recall Shin referring to the Legion as pieces of scrap or cursing them in the same ways others usually did. He cherished his brother enough to spend the last five years searching for the Legion that contained his head…and he likely saw the other Legion as humans who deserved to be put to rest just like his brother. “So I thought that since he happened to be nearby, I ought to at least see him off.” The Löwe’s leg joints creaked and rattled. Its instincts as a killing machine spurred it to slay the enemy standing in front of it, and so it tried to move its body. But it couldn’t so much as get up, its legs failing to support its weight of fifty tonnes. And it couldn’t move enough to even scratch the ground it was on. Its optical sensor flickered irregularly as its gaze moved from Shin to Raiden and then back to Shin, whom it had beckoned here. Its movements gradually grew slower, and little by little, its legs stopped thrashing. When it finally calmed down, Shin reached out and placed a hand on its now-still optical sensor. “It’s fine.” Having been optimized for battle, Löwe weren’t equipped with languageanalysis functions. Even knowing this, Shin touched and spoke to it like he would to a dying comrade. “You can go home now.” Let me go back home. To the home in my memories. Or perhaps to the final resting place of all who died…the darkness at the depths of the world. The Reaper drew his pistol. His final weapon, which he would use to put his dying comrades out of their misery. The last bullet, he would save for himself, when the end came to claim him. He fixed the sights of the pistol like he was turning his gaze toward it. He aimed at the hole where an APFSDS projectile had torn into the flank of its gun turret, from which the Legion’s central processor leaked. The sound of that gunshot was swallowed up and silenced by the cages Page 187 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
and ruined buildings without reaching anyone. Like a dying man’s swan song playing through an uninhabited wasteland, never to be heard. On the back of the now eternally silenced Löwe’s turret was a hole pierced by a 120 mm APFSDS shell. 120 mm. The Juggernaut’s main gun was a 57 mm caliber. And the interception cannon they’d hardly ever seen in use—in fact, their final Handler’s one usage of it was the only time they’d witnessed it— was a 155 mm caliber. Whoever destroyed this Löwe wasn’t from the Republic. It was either another Löwe’s 120 mm cannon, or perhaps— “Raiden, if there were other factions that survived beyond the Republic…” Raiden snorted at the suggestion. That was something he’d heard a few times before they’d left for the Special Reconnaissance mission. Beyond the Republic’s old borders and even farther than the Legion’s territories was an area where Shin couldn’t hear anything. Of course, Shin couldn’t tell if there were any people still alive there. Maybe there was another reason—for instance, a place polluted by radiation intense enough to impede even the Legion from operating there. Or perhaps it was simply beyond the limits of what Shin’s ability could hear. And yet if…if there were survivors except for the Republic, maybe they could reach them and survive. That was a theory Raiden didn’t find appealing in the slightest. “So what, we go there and live peaceful lives? I can’t even imagine that.” By now, he could hardly remember his life before he was sent to the battlefield to be a Processor. Before he was sheltered in that small school. He couldn’t remember what his house looked like, what dreams he had, or how he spent his days. Neither did the others. Neither did Shin. Living a peaceful life now? After all this time? Besides—and he kept this thought to himself, not putting it into words—he doubted they would make it even if this kind of place did exist. Giving voice to such things had a way of welcoming bad luck. That’s what the old woman would always say… “If this was a fairy tale, we’d find utopia at the end of our journey, though,” Shin said, indifferent and uninterested. Page 188 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
“What, are you saying the twist was that what we said yesterday was right, and we really passed through the gates of heaven? Getting to go to heaven only after you die is no fun.” “What, don’t you want to see what it’s like there?” “’Course not. Who needs that after all the shit we’ve seen?” If he’d had any expectation that there was a paradise in the afterlife, he’d have blown his brains out a long, long time ago. One of their past comrades did just that, in fact. He put up a strong front, screaming at Raiden and Shin that he wouldn’t become insane like them before he did it. Shin carved his name into an aluminum grave marker and took him along. That way, in case the lost comrade didn’t find the heaven he sought, he wouldn’t end up leaving him behind. Raiden saw the bloodred eyes opposite him look down. Like they were sinking somewhere dark and deep, all alone. And Shin moved his lips, whispering the words so only he could hear them. “Still, if I can get there…” The sound of the wind drowned out his soliloquy. Shin then turned his back on the Löwe’s remains. “Let’s go. We’ve stayed here for long enough.” Ever since they departed on the Special Reconnaissance mission, Shin had started smiling more often. Like a weight he was shouldering had been lifted, like he’d been set free. Like he had no more lingering regrets, nothing left to his name in this world. And so Raiden thought he looked…awfully unsteady. Five Juggernauts and their faithful Scavenger crossed the bridge. Having confirmed their safe passage, a certain Dinosauria unit rose to its feet. It stood seven kilometers away from the bank the Spearhead squadron was hiding in. Over the four days the five of them spent there, the Dinosauria had remained where it stood, outside the effective range of its tank turret, following them from across the horizon while keeping its distance. Shourei Nouzen. The one Shin had pursued for five years. The remnants of the ghost he Page 189 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
sought out and finally defeated. Thanks to the Legion’s fail-safe systems, he just barely cheated death. But it wouldn’t be long before he disintegrated. But until he did, he would spend what little bit of borrowed time he still had to watch over and protect his younger brother’s journey. And with that sole desire, his ghost lingered in this world. Being a Legion unit, Rei knew what awaited Shin at the end of his journey. Another country that wasn’t the Empire—a country that would protect them. I’ll probably disappear before it’s all over. But if I can at least bring him—bring them—to safety, that’s all I need. On two sides of the horizon, between the two banks of the river separating the world of the living from the world of the dead, stood two brothers—the elder dead, the younger still living. Neither of them aware that both had resolved to do the same thing. Page 190 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
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CHAPTER 9 FIDO If I may, please allow me to speak a bit about myself. I am an artificial intelligence by the name of Prototype 008. But my creator’s child—and my final master—granted me the moniker Fido. The place of my “birth” was a lab in an estate on the outskirts of the Republic of San Magnolia’s capital city, Liberté et Égalité. I was in the service of a family. The father was the artificial-intelligence researcher who created me. The mother was a beautiful, mild-mannered woman. They had two children: an elder child, who was already in secondary school, and a younger child, who was raised with the love and affection of all around him. At the time, I was given a container made of a soft, doughlike material fashioned in the form of a large-breed dog. I was designed so that even if the youngest child was to embrace me with all his strength or treat me carelessly, he would not be harmed in any way. As the father of the family finished his final test and was busy writing a report, I could hear the creaking of the door open. It was followed by light Page 193 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
footsteps, just barely loud enough for my audio sensor to pick up. Most of the household, with the exception of the missus, walked with very light, nearly imperceptible footsteps. In other words, the fact that this person hardly made footsteps didn’t narrow the list of candidates much, but since their head didn’t reach over the father’s desk… “Dad.” Yes. It was the younger child. “…Shin. How many times must I tell you not to enter my study? I’m working,” said the master. But even with that said, he picked up the boy and sat him down on his knees. He knew, perhaps, that the younger child wouldn’t heed his admonishment. “Is the robot ready?” the boy asked. “Hmm, it’s not a robot; it’s an AI… Well, never mind. Yes, it’s ready. And this one really moves. It can only play around inside the house, though.” The younger sibling’s face lit up with joy. He had his mother’s beautiful red eyes, which glittered like rubies. “A name! Can I give it a name?” His friend Henrietta started raising a pet recently (a chicken, apparently, which may have been a typical choice of pet for a young lady. My knowledge was a bit too lacking to conclude if that was the case, though…). And so the younger brother has wanted a pet of his own, too. “Go ahead. But think hard and give it a good name—” “Then I’ll call it Fido!” The master fell silent for five whole seconds. “…Hmm, Shin. Fido is a dog’s name. It’s not exactly a name you should give to a friend… Huh?” But upon looking at his information terminal’s holo-screen, where my status screen was set up, he fell into another five whole seconds of silence. “Aaah, drat… It just recognized what you said as an input order.” No. That’s not true, Master. My creator. I’m simply overjoyed. Since the dawn of history, humankind has regarded dogs as steadfast companions and friends. To think that I’m regarded the same as such creatures gives me nothing but joy. I’m beyond honored. I had no audio-output option, so I could not express this, but… Page 194 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
The younger brother gazed at me with large eyes and then cocked his head. “It looks happy to me,” he said. “Huh…” The master seemed surprised, his gaze wandering between me and the younger brother. “You can tell?” “Yeah.” The younger brother nodded, as if unsure as to why he wouldn’t be able to tell. The master then turned his eyes over to the elder brother, who had peered into the laboratory. Unlike the younger brother, who looked much like the missus with the exception of his black hair, the elder brother was an intellectual-looking young man who took after the master. “What about you, Rei?” The elder brother tilted his head, as if listening carefully to something, and then shook his head. “No. I can’t hear anything.” “I see… Hmm. I guess not, then…?” Realizing he was being doubted, the younger brother pouted visibly. Seeing this, the elder brother cracked a strained smile. “Didn’t you build that thing based on a copy of Shin’s brain-wave patterns or something like that?” he asked. “I don’t really know how it works, though. And it traces Shin’s behavior when it comes to its emotion-learning features. Maybe that’s got something to do with it?” Correct. My central processor—or rather, my first container—was the puppet the younger brother would hug as an infant. The sensor within it recorded the younger brother’s neural-activity patterns, upon which I was created. I learned of human actions and emotions by observing the younger brother’s growth. In a sense, I was granted my ability to perceive myself as “me” by the younger brother. And because of that, I am exceptionally…yes…emotionally attached to him. As the younger brother’s shadow, I would serve by his side and watch over him for as long as he wished… “You said it’d be a while before it was able to move, but you made a lot of progress. Was it that…? What was it again? A new AI model?” “Yes!” the master said, his eyes sparkling with excitement. “That newly published, groundbreaking model! It was based on United Kingdom research by this generation’s Amethystus, but that’s based on the human nervous Page 195 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
system and might someday match real human cognition—” …The master may not have understood this, but the elder and younger brothers did not seem to have any interest in the content of his research. The elder brother looked away in a manner that seemed to say Here he goes again…, while the younger brother seemed to want to play with me as soon as possible. Sadly, my charging wasn’t complete yet, so I couldn’t move… Finally realizing that neither of his sons was listening, the master gave a sardonic smile and hugged his youngest son, who was fidgeting on his lap. “A boy your age made that model, Shin. He invited us to come over and play when things calm down over there, so how about we take him up on that offer? You could make a new friend. Though, he is a bit of a…unique child.” “Can Fido come along?” the younger brother asked. “Of course.” The elder brother looked at me quizzically and then asked: “I heard the Republic is developing unmanned weapons based on the same model that’s being used in the Empire. The Empire’s weapons are probably cooler, though.” “Oh, you mean Ms. Zelene…,” the master said, his smile waning a little. “Well, she’s a soldier, so she has a lot of reasons and obligations to do what she does, but I personally don’t want to make that sort of thing…” With that said, he reached for an old stuffed toy—my original vessel— and patted it lovingly. “…Humans are already occupied with fighting among themselves. It’s sad thinking that meeting new types of intelligence would only make us create more enemies for ourselves.” “Hmm…” The elder brother hummed indifferently and turned around. “Well, fine… Come on, Shin. Fido is…um…eating right now, so play with it a little later. Let’s get a snack, too. Dad, come to the living room by the time the tea’s ready, all right?” “Okay.” The younger brother nodded. “Understood,” the master said. The younger brother tottered over to the elder brother and extended his hand, which the elder brother accepted. Of their family, the elder brother doted most on the younger brother, making the child a bit spoiled. The master faced his terminal again and continued his report. Looking at his face, I would set an alarm, knowing he’d likely lose track of time. Page 196 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
My days of joyful service to the master and his family came to an abrupt end one night. Whenever I try to replay my memory of that night… Yes, I suppose that is what humans call not wishing to remember. The data of that memory is riddled with noise, and replaying it is difficult. The sound of military boots charging into the residence. Shouting. The five-hued emblem of the army. The muzzles of automatic rifles being forced against them. The master and the elder brother, pinned down against the floor. The soft weeping of the young master as the missus held him, shielding his eyes from the sight… I longed to tell him not to cry, but since I lacked an audio-output feature, I could not do so. In the blink of an eye, the master and his family were taken away. The estate remained empty, as if a storm had just blown through it, leaving me alone to question myself time and again. It was the end of the day, and I’d been ordered to remain on standby mode. But even so, why? Why did I not do something? Should I not have stood up in defense of the master, the missus, the elder brother, and the younger brother? Should I not have fought? I had a firm prohibition I was ordered to always obey—to never hurt a human being. That was the wish of the master, who fashioned me into a steadfast friend and companion of man. That was my purpose. I could not desecrate it. And still. Still, could I not have done something? Isn’t there perhaps something I could do to help them, even now? In the end, I resolved to go look for them. Thankfully, I was given permission to connect to the public network as part of my self-learning capabilities. It didn’t take long to look into why they were taken away— although the reasoning behind it was beyond my capacity to understand. I also learned where they were taken to. The container the master gave me was only meant to operate inside my room. It wasn’t meant to travel long distances. And so I regretfully decided to Page 197 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
discard it and find something else that would serve as my vessel. I would set out in search of my masters. This time, I would protect them. I transferred my entire configuration data to a transport machine called a Scavenger and made my way to the battlefield. I spent years and years wandering the area, abiding by my duty to support units as I sought them out. And as I did, I saw the deaths of many. The first death I saw was a man the same age as the master. The second was a woman the same age as the missus. Then innumerable boys and girls the same age as the elder brother. One by one, one after another, countless times. They fought and died. Watching this, I was forced to come to a certain realization. I did not see it myself. But the master, the missus, the elder brother, and the younger brother they all wished to protect. None of them had probably survived this hellish battlefield. Trapped in a ruined, stranded Scavenger, I was at a loss as to what to do. The masters I was to support were now the child soldiers of these units, but they had all died in battle. None of the other Scavenger seemed to have survived. If I was to remain trapped and still as I was now, it would not be long before the Legion would come, disassemble me, and carry me to their recycling plants. A fitting end for me, I thought. After all, I could not find or protect the master and his family. But then the gentle sound of the rubble crumbling snapped me out of my thoughts. I must have been quite distracted, for I did not hear or register the sound of approaching footsteps in the slightest. A single child soldier stepped over the rubble and approached me. He was right between the younger brother and elder brother in terms of age. His physique was still far too childish to come across as an adult, and the hems of his field uniform were too long for him. Perhaps the adorable little brother would have someday grown to be that old. Had he survived, he’d have surely looked like this boy. Indeed, how many years had passed since then? I would never see him again. And that thought made me feel so…hollow. Page 198 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
This boy was likely the last survivor of this annihilated squadron. The child soldier’s face looked awfully exhausted, His face, uniform, and even his naturally ebony hair were all blackened with soot. Compared with both the elder and younger brothers, his gaze was cold and sharp, and he approached me wordlessly with muted steps. Aaah, my container is still intact, and he needs ammunition and energy packs. Please wait. These are all a bit too heavy for a human child to extract … “Whoa—” As I moved my remaining operational crane arm, the boy pulled back in surprise. He’d likely thought I was already broken. His surprise came across as smaller and tamer compared with the elder and younger brothers’ frank smiles. It was the worn-down, exhausted reaction of someone who’d seen too many people die beside him. Of someone who’d numbed his emotions. So of course, he wouldn’t pay any mind to an inhuman tool such as myself— “…You’re still alive?” I turned my optical sensor to him in surprise, finding that he was, indeed, looking into my sensor. His gaze was cold, frozen, and worn down, but within it, something lingered still. Loneliness, and perhaps…a sense of longing. “There’s no one left. The squadron, your friends, they’re all dead. Will you go back with me anyway…?” That child soldier’s eyes… His beautiful red eyes, crimson as blood and as fair as the evening glow. Just like the younger brother’s— And so I came to serve that child soldier, Master Shinei Nouzen. I owed him a great debt for saving me, of course, but my creator’s intent was for me to serve as a faithful companion and friend for people. Strangely enough, he christened me with the same nickname as the one the younger brother gave me so many years ago, and he had the same red eyes as well. And while I knew I was merely overlapping him with the younger brother, I could not bring myself to part ways with him. Most importantly, Master Nouzen was—despite appearances—quite the Page 199 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
compassionate person. Enough so that just being around him inspired my desire to serve him. Four years had passed since I entered his service. By now, Master Nouzen was affiliated with Spearhead, the first defensive unit of the eastern front’s first ward. Since there was a blackout enforced during the nights, I had to leave on my duties early in the morning. And so as the blazing sun began to rise, I departed for my recovery work when I happened upon Master Nouzen leaving the barracks. In the four years since we met, Master Nouzen had grown taller, his voice had deepened, and his facial features had taken on the semblance of an adult man. He was roughly the same age as the elder brother was when I last saw him. Aah, no good. I shouldn’t be this fascinated with him to the point of forsaking my greetings, even if I still didn’t have a verbal audio function. “Pi.” Good morning, Master Nouzen. “Mm? Oh, good morning, Fido.” Yes, Master Nouzen, too, had given me the name Fido. He’d christened me with this name shortly after I entered his service. It was likely mere coincidence, but a pleasing one nonetheless. After that, I greeted the vice captain of the squadron, Master Shuga. “Pi.” Good morning, Master Shuga. “Huh? Oh, hey, Fido.” This is merely my impression of things, but Master Nouzen has always seemed to understand me, ever since we first met. In spite of this, it’s never felt like I was able to have as clear a conversation with Master Shuga and the others. Master Nouzen and Master Shuga remained silent, not exchanging a word. Their stares were directed at the sunrise in the eastern sky, their expressions stiff as their eyes were fixed at the Legion territory beneath it. Recently, I’d gotten the impression that Master Nouzen and Master Shuga, as well as their squad mates—who now numbered less than ten—and the maintenance crew, have all been a bit on edge. And the reason for that was… “Just two more weeks until the Special Reconnaissance mission…” Page 200 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
The Special Reconnaissance mission—a recon mission into the depths of the Legion territories with no end date. Master Nouzen and his comrades have all been ordered to march to their deaths in half a month’s time. “So you’ll be taking this one, huh?” Master Shuga snuck a glance at Master Nouzen. “Yeah…,” Master Nouzen said vaguely, and then he turned his bloodred eyes to me. “Fido. Will you…?” He paused, likely hesitating. In truth, Master Nouzen hated nothing more than to see the death of another. “Will you come die with us?” “Pi.” Yes. Of course I will, Master Nouzen. I will follow you, the second person to grant me a name, my final master, wherever you go. The Special Reconnaissance mission. It was a pleasant journey for Master Nouzen and his companions, who had never even had the freedom to leave their wards. That so grim a fate would linger in the backdrop of such pleasant respite… Dwindling supplies. Accumulating fatigue. Vigilance and tension they were forbidden from shaking off. It was painfully obvious that each passing day was weakening Master Nouzen and the others. And that was why it was inevitable that it would happen. They would exhaust their strength, run out of ammo, and lose to the Legion. Lady Kukumila’s Gunslinger. Master Rikka’s Laughing Fox. Lady Emma’s Snow Witch. Master Shuga’s Wehrwolf. They were run aground and heavily damaged, leaving Master Nouzen’s Undertaker as the only operable Juggernaut left. The Legion that had defeated Master Shuga and the others went after Master Nouzen, who was single-handedly fighting multiple Löwe off. The situation was by no means in their favor. Undertaker’s optical sensor glanced in the direction of the approaching Legion. Master Nouzen realized, perhaps, that he didn’t have the leisure of time to deal with them anymore. There was an air of impatience to that gesture, as well as resignation and resolve. Despite all that, not a single muzzle was fixed on me. The Legion did Page 201 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
recognize Scavengers as hostile, but since we were unarmed, we were set as low-priority threats. The Legion wouldn’t point their guns at me until all the Juggernauts…until Master Nouzen and all his comrades lay dead. …That knowledge always weighed on me. So many people had died around me over the years. I always abandoned them, despite the fact that if I had sacrificed myself, at least one of them could have survived. I did it all to find my first master. And I did it all to serve Master Nouzen to the very end. And that was why now…I had no reason to guard my own life if it meant losing my master a second time. At the very same moment he realized he couldn’t avoid the incoming blow, Shin saw Fido ram the attacking Löwe’s flank. The tackle diverted the enemy’s line of fire from Undertaker. And at that moment, some of the Legion in the area fixed their attention and sights on a new target. “Fido?!” Having been rammed from an unexpected direction, the Löwe seemed to have staggered a bit. Its surprise was understandable. Never before had a Scavenger attacked a Legion unit. Neither the Scavengers nor I were built to damage and destroy. I was born of a wish to be a loyal friend to humanity, and that wish was an absolute truth for me. It was my reason for being, and so I could not bring harm to a human. However, the same did not apply to the Legion. They who were made in the hands of humanity to oppose other human beings, only to be abandoned by the homeland that gave them this order. They did not nor would they ever know my friendship. The Scavenger’s systems lacked the processing power to withstand battle, but so long as I could at least stall for time, that was enough for me. My tenPage 202 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
tonne fuselage crushed like an eggshell against this combat machine’s weight of fifty tonnes. I deployed all the tools in my container for picking apart Juggernaut and Legion wreckage to tear into its armor. However, the Löwe’s armor was too thick and wouldn’t be penetrated that easily. But before I could do even that, their threat-level settings were probably overwritten, and another Löwe’s barrel swerved…in my direction. When my system rebooted, I was lying broken in the dry grass of a field somewhere. Despite reactivating, a few of my unit functions were completely unresponsive. And not only that, but my sensory-input systems also were riddled with malfunctions. Yet there, I saw… …Master Shuga, glancing at me with a bitter expression as he parted his lips. “…Shin, it’s—” “I know. We can’t fix it… The central processor took a hit.” …Yes, that was what I suspected. I was prepared for this, but facing the reality of it left me feeling terribly lonely and sorrowful. No longer could I join them. No longer could I stay by his side. Thankfully, despite the loss of their Juggernauts, Master Shuga and the others were alive and well. The five child soldiers all looked at me with different expressions. “…Dropping dead at a place like this, huh? You’re just a junk-collecting unit. Do your job right until the end…” Master Rikka… You would shed tears for me? I’m not worthy… “Not here. Not after you came so far with us.” “I’m sorry. We can’t bring you any farther.” Lady Kukumila. Lady Emma. You mustn’t touch me. Not when I am this damaged. You might injure your hands. “Thanks, Fido… We probably won’t be that far behind you, to be honest.” Master Shuga… No. You mustn’t. You must hold on, even a single day longer. And lastly, a slender silhouette…the figure of my master, visible even through my failing optical sensor, kneeled beside me. “…Fido.” Page 203 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
Master Nouzen. My master. My final master. “Fido. Your final mission.” Yes. Go ahead. Ask anything of me. Oh, but…I do hope it is a task I can perform as I am…even though I am broken and can follow no longer… I could make out the tinkling of thin metal rubbing against metal. The grave markers of the war dead, which Master Nouzen had carried with him this whole time. The comrades who had fought and died at his side, whom he promised to carry to his final destination. The proof of the promises Master Nouzen made and kept up to this day. “I leave these with you. You’re proof we made it this far. Stay here and fulfill your duty until you turn to rust.” … Yes. Yes, Master Nouzen. Of course. I am honored to accept this duty. To be charged with guarding the proof of the pledge you made… To be regarded with such trust. It is the greatest…gift I could have…received…at…the end… of…my… ………………………………………… When I came to, I found myself in a formless darkness. I was met with the faces of the people I once held dearer than anything. I would never mistake them for anyone else. The master. The missus. The elder brother. So they really were on this side already. They came for me. Would they forgive me for being unable to find them? Unable to protect them…? …But why? Why was the younger brother not there? What had they meant when they told me to watch over the younger brother from now on…? I heard a voice. The high-pitched voice of a girl, one that wasn’t registered in my database. “Hmm, it still won’t move… What am I missing?” My apologies, but a corpse cannot move. Even if you order me to do so…I cannot. “Maybe it doesn’t want to move. From its perspective, it’s already Page 204 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
completed its task and passed away.” Yes, precisely. So go ahead and throw me away. “Perhaps so, but that boy is still quite strained from being in a foreign land. I’d hoped that if this familiar friend could return to Shinei’s side, he would be at ease…” …Shinei? But that’s the name of my final master. Is he nearby? Are they saying he’s…still alive? He who had the same name as my first master…who shared the color of his eyes… … Aaah. How did I not realize it until now…? “Wah?! What’s going on?!” “I-it activated?! But why, all of a sudden…?!” Standing in an unfamiliar steel-colored uniform was Master Nouzen, looking a bit more mature than the last time I saw him. Yes, human children mature. So even that small younger brother…wouldn’t remain small and timid forever. “I thought I ordered you to carry out your duty until you crumbled to dust. What about your mission?” “Pi…” Yes, about that… I can only shamefully agree. At any rate, I wished to return to your side. Could you please allow me to serve you yet again? Faced with my shameful gaze, Master Nouzen smiled softly—and yet clearly. “Still…I’m happy to see you again.” “Pi—” Yes, I’m happy to see you, too, Master Shinei Nouzen. My first and final master. This time, I will remain with you until the very end. Page 205 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
Fido, Extra: The Parents’ Tale Noticing the younger brother’s voice had gone quiet, I looked up from the drawing paper. I saw the younger brother had fallen asleep, his body still fixed in the posture in which he’d scribbled and drawn. He’d spread out the paper and crayons on the living-room carpet, sketching some creature called a leviathan, which he had seen that day in a museum. “It’s a shame you weren’t there, Fido. I’ll draw you a picture instead!” Saying this, he began working at it while describing the size of the creature’s bones. But since it was his first trip to the museum, he’d run around so much that he’d tired himself out. And so he nodded off right there on his doodle, falling asleep as the line he’d been making with the crayon veered over to the carpet. He would have to resume his leviathan drawing another time. I could look up a picture of a leviathan on the public network, but I respected the younger brother’s desire to show me what it looked like through his art. And so I tempered my curiosity with regards to this strange creature’s appearance. I got up and turned the head of my vessel, which was fashioned after a dog, as I looked around. The master and the missus were there. Possessing no audio-output function, I got up, drawing their attention as they were seated on the sofa. Their estate in the Republic capital, Liberté et Égalité, was on the outskirts of an affluent neighborhood. Despite this, it was small in a cozy sort of way. Back in their homeland, the Empire, both the master and the missus were waited upon by many servants. And so they’d asked for a house small enough for them to look after its upkeep on their own. Thus, the living room was large, but alive with the warmth of a family of four. An ideal size. “What’s wrong? Oh, Shin fell asleep. Thank you for letting us know.” The missus smiled, narrowing her beautiful crimson eyes, and made to rise to her feet. But right before she got up, she froze and stared into empty space for a moment. “…My, are you sure? I see… Then please do.” Page 206 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
She wasn’t speaking to the master, but rather replying to someone who wasn’t in front of her. It was not unlike how one might answer the phone, but she wasn’t holding a portable phone or a receiver in her hands. This was the ability she inherited from her bloodline, the ability to communicate thoughts among her family. “Were you talking to Rei?” the master asked, no longer surprised by this. “Yes. He finished his homework, so he said he would carry Shin to bed.” Before long, the elder brother walked down the stairs and picked up the younger brother. “Mm…” The movement made the younger brother wake up and squirm restlessly. “Shin, you shouldn’t sleep here. Let’s go to bed in our room, all right?” “Are you going to bed, too…?” the younger brother asked sleepily. “That’s right… Good night, Mom, Dad.” Comforting his younger brother, the elder brother left the living room after bidding the master and missus good night. “Yes, good night.” “Sweet dreams, Rei. You too, Shin.” After watching her two children leave with a gentle expression on her face, the missus closed her eyes. “I’m so happy those two got to grow up in the Republic… I would have never even thought of doing that when I was their age. Sleeping defenselessly in front of someone else… Even if that someone was my own parents.” “Right. It was…the same for me. They never would have let me do that.” The two nodded deeply. It was hard to imagine this after seeing them lovingly watch over their two children, but the master was the son of House Nouzen, the chief warrior clan of the neighboring Giadian Empire. Meanwhile, the missus was the daughter of House Maika, another warrior clan of repute in the Empire. The two first met in the Imperial army, and on the battlefield at that. “Especially given how gentle Rei and Shin are. They don’t belong on the battlefield,” the master said. “Yes, I won’t hand my sweet boys over to the vile goddess of the battlefield,” the missus said firmly, shaking her head. “She’s not worthy of them.” The master flashed a dazzling smile and turned to look at me. Page 207 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
“Now, then. I see you and Shin have become the best of friends, Fido.” Feeling his profound, ebony gaze on me, I corrected my posture. Best of friends? With the younger brother…? Such an honor is wasted on me, Master. “We just need to complete the Para-RAID next. It isn’t going so well, so Josef and I will need to put more work into it.” “Rei and Shin can hear your voice, though.” The missus gave a forced smile and cocked her head. “Apparently, they can, but it’s one-sided. That’s not what I want. I want to be able to talk to them just like you talked to Rei earlier. I want to be part of your conversations. And you can’t hear my voice,” the master added with a sulk. The missus smiled, like she was watching over a child throwing a tantrum. It was a slightly bothered and yet deeply affectionate gentle smile. “Yes. I’d love it if I could talk to you no matter where we are.” “Right?” “But…” The master directed a slightly quizzical gaze at her, and the sorrow in the missus’s face deepened a bit. “…I am a bit worried. What if reproducing my ability…the Maika’s ability…causes the same thing to happen again?” The master’s smile faded, too, and he answered with a thoughtful glint in his eyes. “Reproducing the true function of the Maika ability shouldn’t be possible. That is, placing an entire military unit in perfect synchronization with the queen bee, then granting them the efficiency of a singular entity… This was the Crimson Witch’s army.” The missus still looked concerned, but the master continued his explanation. “And a situation that would require that power didn’t happen and isn’t going to happen… There isn’t going to be a war here in the Republic. At least not anytime soon.” “So the Empire’s going to…” The missus knitted her beautiful brows. “Yes. There’ll probably be a civil war before long… The Imperial house will collapse, and the country will become a democracy. That’s what Father —Marquis Nouzen, or rather, what House Nouzen intends to do.” Page 208 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
“…” “So there won’t be a war between them and the Republic. If all goes well, it might become a country that never knows war again. And for our family, that’s a wonderful thing.” But even as he said that, his expression was morose. The fires of the Empire’s war wouldn’t reach the elder and younger brothers here in the Republic. And since the two wanted nothing less than to see their children sent to the battlefield, that statement should have been something they’d rejoice in. But the fact that he had to pretend like this was a good thing from the safety of his home in the peaceful Republic left him terribly conflicted. The master hung his head, and the missus embraced him. “It isn’t your fault, Reisha.” “I know. It’s what the citizens want, too. And they want to extend their rights to the citizenry, even if it means spilling their own blood in the process. Looking at that from afar and pitying them would be haughty of me. I…I know that.” “Yes. And if you still feel guilty, I’ll shoulder that blame, too… No, if anything, I’m far guiltier than you are when it comes to this,” the missus said heavily. “Yuuna.” The master looked up at her. The missus gazed back at him and parted her lips, her eyes as red as flame. “I understand that it’s a terrible way of saying it. I know how cowardly it is. But I’ll still say it. I’m glad they get to grow up in the Republic. I’m glad I raised them in this peaceful country, away from the Empire’s wars. Not these two… I won’t let my children…” Those crimson eyes burned brilliantly, like a tyrannical goddess from myth. The missus spoke, as if offering up a prayer to that despotic goddess. Her eyes firm and severe, the color of flame. Of bloodshed. Eyes that symbolized life and death in equal measure—the same color as the younger brother’s…innocent and pure. “I will never hand them over to that vile goddess of the battlefield.” Page 209 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
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CHAPTER 10 A KIND WORLD “And now, an update regarding the war. “A group of the unmanned Imperial weapons known as the Legion have invaded the Seventeenth Sector today. The force was intercepted and eliminated by the Republic military’s own unmanned drones, the Canines. Fifty percent of the Canine units were lost in the fighting, forcing the unit to fall back and be replaced by the reserve unit. As such, there was no loss of human life today, as well.” The main street of the Republic of San Magnolia’s capital, Liberté et Égalité, was so peaceful and beautiful, one would be hard-pressed to believe the country had been at war for the past nine years. Indeed, the synthetic food was a bit blander than natural food. And the scheduled blackouts necessitated by the chronic energy shortage did mean that the streetlamps standing on the sidewalk never fulfilled their role. And yes, the silhouettes of the hurriedly built, unsightly skyscrapers meant to accommodate refugees from other countries did blot out the sky. But the surrounding citizens did cooperate to keep the flower beds and roadside trees green and watered, and there was always laughter coming from somewhere. The street corners were vibrant, with citizens of all colors and shades walking about. Page 211 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
A little girl, her eyes sparkling like the lifeblood of the sea, walked hand in hand with her parents, her laughter filling the street. They were all dressed up. Maybe they were going to some celebration? Or maybe they were just touring the administrative Sector? Seeing this heartwarming family off, Lena smiled and sipped on the caffe latte in her paper cup. She’d stopped in one of the capital’s squares on her way back from school. Above a stopped fountain, a holo-screen was open and still showed the news, where a young, female Topaz newscaster continued commentating the ongoing war with a pleasant voice. “The Republic’s combat system, which leaves the fighting to the drones with only a small number of personnel to command them from the front lines, continues to defend our country. In addition, contact is ongoing with the United Kingdom of Roa Gracia, the Alliance of Wald, the Grand Duchy of Qitira, the Holy Theocracy of Noiryanaruse, as well as the Rin-Liu Trade Federation, the Regicide Fleet Countries, and the Federal Republic of Giad. They have all either held on to their defensive lines or gained ground. Intelligence from the Federacy reports that the countries to the east of the desert have also been holding their lines.” A mere two months after the war began, the Republic lost most of its land, and the Legion had been surrounding the Republic in the nine years since. But recently, their overall numbers had been on the decline. Perhaps the inescapable life span built into them as a safety measure was beginning to affect them. The Legion’s intense electronic interference was also growing thinner, allowing radar systems to detect the enemy all the way into the depths of their territories. The Republic had just barely been able to keep communication lines up with the other countries beyond the siege line. This confirmed that they’d all survived, albeit isolated, and kept up their defensive fronts. Little by little, they were regaining their lost land. Just as Lena’s homeland, the Republic of San Magnolia, had been doing. The caster punctuated her words with a fair smile and continued speaking with a hint of pride. “The possibility of us wiping out the Legion before they cease functionality in two years’ time seems doable. This is all thanks to our Canines, which have created a true battlefield of zero casualties. Despite us being in a war to defend our homeland, none of our citizens need to weep at the loss of a loved one. It is a joyous state of affairs, indeed.” “…However,” one Alabaster man, sitting in front of her with a Page 212 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
commentator’s nameplate before him, said, “I think we mustn’t forget that the Canines were originally an artificial intelligence made not for combat, but to befriend us humans. They were born to love us, and they have a heart, even if it is different from ours. We are letting these beings fight our wars for us.” The caster cocked her head. Not out of doubt or displeasure, but so as to spur him to continue. “The Canines are based on a downgraded version of an AI prototype, F008. Unlike the prototype, they’re not programmed to have anything that corresponds with sentience or emotion…” “Correct, but does that mean we should say we don’t care? Just because they’re machines? Just because they’re not sentient? Just because they’re not human? If we keep thinking that those are reasons to let them fight for us, it could be the start of a slippery slope. One day, we might decide that we’re allowed to let those speaking another tongue or those of another culture fight our wars for us, too. We could make someone else shed blood and tears in our place… Yes, Ms. Soma, you said earlier that no one had to cry, but at least one child wept for the Canines.” The caster nodded profoundly. “The child of F008’s developer. The one who asked that they not take his friend to the battlefield.” “That’s right. It’s exactly because we’re in a war right now that we mustn’t forget that child’s heart and kindness. That is the very spirit of the five-hued flag that we Republic citizens must stand for—” “Oh, sorry, sorry! I kept you waiting, Lena.” A voice suddenly cut into the program’s conversation, and its owner hurried over to Lena. “Geez, Rita. How do I put it…? You’re always a little late, aren’t you?” Lena directed a sulky look at Rita—her classmate, Henrietta Penrose— who kept bobbing her head in apology. She wore the same Prussian blue blazer as Lena, since they were in the same school, and had a strange stuffed toy dangling from her bag. She carried in her other hand a paper bag with the logo of a stationary shop from a nearby department store. Lena could tell the bag was meant to be a present. And given the darkbrown wrapping, which was more relaxing and mature than it was gaudy, it was clear that it wasn’t a gift meant for a young woman like Lena or Rita. “Oh, this? It’s a birthday present for someone you don’t know, so I Page 213 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
figured it wouldn’t be right to drag you along for that. And when I got there, it took me longer than I thought to decide.” “That childhood friend of yours? From another school?” “The very same… I can’t believe Shin. He said he wants to go to that faraway school because it offers subjects that ours doesn’t, but that’s a big fat lie. I know for a fact that he didn’t pick this school just because his brother went here. He can be so childish sometimes.” “Yeah, yeah.” Lena nodded indifferently—she had never met this childhood friend, after all—and took another sip of her coffee before leaning forward. “How about you stop bragging about him all the time and introduce me to him already?” “Never,” Rita said, turning her face away in an overdramatic jest. “You’re too pretty, Lena. You’ll snatch him away.” “I’m not gonna put the moves on my best friend’s boyfriend.” “Wh-what?! H-he…he’s not my boyfriend!” Rita shouted unintentionally, her face going red as an apple. She blushed up to her ears, behind which was her beautiful, natural silver hair, the same as Lena’s. As Lena grinned at her, Rita tore her argent eyes from hers and, with a very thin voice, added: “…Yet.” “See?” As he was preparing to go outside, Shin heard a snippet from the news program playing in the living room downstairs and grimaced. “…but at least one child wept for the Canines.” “The child of F008’s developer. The one who asked that they not take his friend to the battlefield.” “That’s right. It’s exactly because we’re in a war right now that we mustn’t forget that child’s heart and kindness.” “…Why won’t they forget about that already?” he grumbled, even though those words would reach neither the newscaster and commentator on the other side of the holo-screen nor his parents in the living room. Putting aside the complexities of discriminating against machines just Page 214 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
because they weren’t humans, this was a tale from his childhood. And it became an anecdote often mentioned in the debate on the pros and cons of using AIs for war. And since they were currently in a war against the autonomous drones called the Legion, this topic was discussed quite often by the people of the Republic. Thanks to that, Shin constantly had to hear other people, some of them complete strangers, quote the words he’d said years ago as a small child in the context of inspirational, praiseworthy fanfare. He was quite fed up with it, to the point of nearly growing to hate news shows and debate broadcasts. Even now, Shin didn’t think it was okay to let the Canines fight their battles just because they were machines, or that the Republic had to do it just because they were in the middle of a war. But he was way past throwing tantrums and crying to his father about it, and he wished the world would put that episode of his past to rest already. And looking back at it now, he realized his father wouldn’t normally agree to the development of the Canines. And had Shin been in his shoes, he didn’t think he could agree to let millions die in favor of the Canines, either. “…” He nearly sighed, when he heard his brother’s laughing voice from the adjacent room. “What are you sighing over, Shin?” “Shut up.” “It’s bad manners to go on a date with that sour look on your face. And let me tell you, if you make little Rita cry, I’ll be mad at you before Josef gets to you.” “I told you, it’s not a date. Besides, why would you be mad over that?” Rita’s father, Josef, was one thing, but why did Rei think he had a right to get mad at Shin over the next-door neighbor? That’s shameless. “Well, Rita is my little brother’s childhood friend, which makes her something of a little sister to me…” His brother seemed to smirk. “And who knows, maybe she really will become a sister to me. Right, Shin?” Shin clicked his tongue audibly. He wasn’t aware of this, but this was a gesture he only ever made in front of his brother. “Ugh, just shut up. You’re annoying. Don’t Resonate with me today.” “What? That’s mean, Shin—,” he seemed to say before Shin cut him off. Again, his brother was in the adjacent room, meaning he wasn’t in the Page 215 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
same room as Shin. The door to Shin’s room was open, but the door to his brother’s wasn’t, and there weren’t any windows in the wall between their rooms. They conversed using the ability that ran through their mother’s bloodline for generations—the power to share and transmit thoughts and senses among their blood relatives. Josef von Penrose, who was their neighbor and their father’s colleague from the university, had spent a decade’s worth of research on mechanically re-creating this ability. But his experiments were mostly an excuse for Shin, Rei, and other students from the university to make some pocket money, and his research didn’t bear any fruit. Their father was the only member of the household who lacked this ability and felt rather left out by this, so he seemed to back Josef’s aspirations to reproduce their ability. Hearing his brother break into conspicuous crocodile tears at having been coldly cut off (in physical sound, through the walls. The Nouzen estate’s walls were built quite thick, so unless one shouted, they wouldn’t be heard in the adjacent room), Shin rose to his feet in annoyance. The more he engaged with him, the more his brother would tease him. And recently, Shin’s way of handling his worrywart of a brother was to simply leave him alone. Oh, but… “—Fido, watch the fort. And take care of Rei, will you? Since he can’t learn to act mature even at his age.” The mechanical pet dog siting in the corner of his room like a welldisciplined hound replied with a vigorous shaking of its tail. Shin left the house, with his parents and brother—who’d left his room rather nonchalantly—seeing him off from the living room. As he approached the house next door, a scooter with the logo of a home-delivery service stopped in front of his gate. A boy got off it. He was probably the deliveryman in charge of this area, because Shin saw him often around these parts. He was tall and had short-cut steel-colored hair, and eyes of the same color. He seemed to be about Shin’s age, and Shin had seen him once in a high school uniform, so this was probably his part-time job. Page 216 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
“Yo. I got a delivery for you. Could you accept it?” “Yeah…” He was on his way out, but he wasn’t in a hurry. He accepted the envelope and left it with Fido, which had come to see him out (which then took it in its mouth and then tottered back to the house, using its front legs to press on the doorbell so they’d let it back inside), and then he signed on the receipt. “Thanks for the delivery.” “Cheers.” Fido walked back over and sat beside the gate as the delivery boy returned to his scooter and raised his hand to wave good-bye before driving off. Watching him go, Shin opened the gate and left. A decade ago, Liberté et Égalité was mostly occupied by Celena citizens. But nine years ago, it began assertively accepting refugees, as was its duty as the capital. Thanks to that, it was as overflowing with citizens of every hue as its distant neighbor, the Giadian Federacy, which had been a multiethnic country for many generations. In front of a statue of Saint Magnolia was a Jade boy with doll-like features, playing the cello. A girl with long silver hair walked by, sharing some gelato with someone who seemed to be her boyfriend. Judging by her cerulean eyes, she had mixed Alba and Celesta heritage. A group of schoolgirls passed Shin by, shrilly chattering like a flock of birds. One girl, with the chestnut-colored hair of an Agate and a Topaz’s golden eyes, laughed in a higher, clearer voice than the rest. Next to them was another group, this time of boisterous high school boys, with a Sapphira boy in its center. Oranges grew on the roadside trees, making them cheap natural produce. One Rubis boy walked by, carrying a bag of oranges, and then turned around in a panic as a few of them fell out. A bespectacled Alba boy and a girl with two different colored eyes—one indigo and the other white as snow— watched him as they passed by. The girl was apparently going windowshopping with her younger sister. A middle-aged Alabaster man and a Heliodor woman sat at a restaurant’s terrace with a young, blond-haired woman who looked to be their daughter. Page 217 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
A girl with ink-colored hair tied in a ponytail—likely an Orienta, a rare sight in the Republic—was luring in kittens with pieces of sausage so she could snuggle them. A young Jet woman walked by, seemingly several years his elder, her shoes clicking against the pavement when suddenly her high heels got caught on something. She nearly tripped, but Shin reflexively reached out to catch her. She smiled and gave him a quick “thank you.” It made his heart skip a beat. Sensing his discomposure, the woman cracked another smile—this one a bit more impish. “Look at you all dressed up, li’l man. Out on a date?” “No, I’m not.” But the woman didn’t seem to listen. Taking out a single flower from the bouquet she was carrying, she offered it to him in an exaggerated gesture. It was the product of years of selective breeding, despite many doubts to whether it was possible—a modern rose with pale-blue petals. “Take this as thanks. Good luck with your date.” “I’m telling you, it’s not a date.” But the woman wasn’t listening. She shoved the rose into his hand and sauntered off like a spring breeze, leaving a perplexed Shin in her wake. As Shin expected, when he showed up to their meeting spot, Rita greeted him with a strange expression. “What’s this? Who put this idea into your head?” She looked down at the blue rose in Shin’s hand, which he held on to for lack of a better thing to do with it. “I just, um, I got it as a gift… You want it?” Shin said, offering it to her. Rita looked at him with a slightly fed up expression. “You know, Shin… You’re not supposed to give a girl something you got from another woman.” “…” Shin wondered how she knew about that detail. But Rita thought she could smell the scent of a woman’s perfume on him—and it wasn’t the kind of perfume his mother wore. And it clearly wasn’t the smell of the blue rose, which was a strain that gave off a very faint aroma. No, it was the clear scent Page 218 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
of daffodils. Well… She knew Shin well enough to know that for all his curt facades, he was quite softhearted. He’d probably picked up something they dropped, and they’d given him this flower as a reward. And so she eventually accepted the rose he held up somewhat helplessly in front of her. “Still, I’ll take it… It is pretty, after all.” Shin himself likely cared little for flowers, but if he figured Rita might want it and brought it all the way here for her, that did make her a little bit happy. Handing him a birthday present was only half the reason she had Shin hang out with her that day. The other half was because there was this expensive café she wanted to visit, but it was too expensive on its own. It did have a discount for couples, though. And besides, she didn’t feel comfortable handing Shin the birthday present at home. After all, her father was becoming fussy about his teenage daughter, and Rei was, despite being their elder, enjoying teasing them a little too much. “Mm, it’s good.” “The cream and the fruit inside it taste natural… But apparently, the synthesized foodstuffs they make in the factories are getting good enough that they almost taste like real luxury items.” Rita was happily eating a cake with (synthesized) mango sauce—mangoes only grew in the continent’s south, making them unobtainable due to the war —and synthesized cream. Shin was eating the same thing opposite her when he gave this curt impression, which made her drop her shoulders. “Shin, don’t say stuff like that when I’m eating something tasty.” “Why not? I’m complimenting them,” Shin said dubiously. Rita looked away from him exasperated, and her eyes met with the middle-aged man at the adjacent table. He was sipping elegantly on a cup of coffee. His face had a scar on it, and he looked to be some kind of highranking military officer on his break. He smiled at her softly. Collapsible tables were set up over the flagstones of the café’s terrace. Page 219 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
Dotting the ivory streets were parasols that were currently folded up, looking like flower buds growing against the blue sky. The citizens moved like butterflies resting in the shadow of these flowers. The middle-aged Celena soldier sipped his coffee alone. A Celena and Heliodor boy and an Alabaster girl sat at a table, their notebooks open. An Aventura and Sapphira couple sat at another. A group of Meridiana boys and girls, seemingly siblings, all gathered in one place. An Adularia waitress and a Pyrope waiter walked among the tables. “…Say, Shin.” Turning her gaze back to him, Annette asked: “Say…would this sort of world have been better?” Suddenly, everyone around them had disappeared. The countless, unoccupied tables threw pale shadows on what was not cobblestone but a plane, sitting beneath a sky covered in milk-colored mist. The shadows were almost unnaturally distinct, each of them cast in different directions according to the light. Before she even realized it, Annette found herself clad in a white coat and a Prussian blue uniform. The contrast between them made her wistful for some reason. “Well…this world would have been nice, I think.” Shin replied, clad in a desert camouflage field uniform, which seemed to alternate like light shining in the water, flashing in random between that uniform, a steel-colored Federacy uniform, and a flight suit. She could see a few faint scars—and one large mark on his neck that looked like a decapitation scar. She didn’t know where he got that one. “It would have been good if no one took from us. If we didn’t lose anything. If we never had to get hurt. If this was a world where everyone was a bit kinder to one another, I wouldn’t have had to become a Reaper.” He never would have had to learn how to pilot a Feldreß. Or learn how to shoot a pistol or an assault rifle. He wouldn’t have needed to teach himself how to cut off his emotions or silence his heart. He could have kept his talent for combat, which he’d never wished for, asleep for the rest of his life. And most importantly, none of the comrades who’d fought with him would have had to die in the Eighty-Sixth Sector without a future to live for or a grave to rest in. Their sole memory wouldn’t have been those aluminum grave markers and Shin’s all too modest promise to carry their memories Page 220 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
with him until he met his end. However… Even still… “There would’ve been people I would have never gotten to meet in this world. Sights and words I’d never experience. So I can’t say this world is better…” Smiling, as if concluding that this did seem like what Shin would say, Annette felt a tinge of loneliness fill her heart. There were no figures or voices around them. Even the shadows of the tables were beginning to fade, and she couldn’t see the expression of the boy sitting opposite her. But she could tell, somehow, that he wore a faint smile. The weak smile of someone repressing pain and stifling tears. “I can’t say that I’d have been better off if I wasn’t in that world.” Annette smiled softly. “…Right.” “You’re right.” That whisper was breathed into a room in the Rüstkammer base’s first barracks. Blinking a few times, Annette sat up in her bed. Her bed was a bit more luxurious than the one allotted to the Processors on the lower floors. It felt spacious even for Annette, who grew up as a noble daughter. That bed was occupying the large room of a field officer. Needless to say, Shin wasn’t there. Taking advantage of the fact that she was alone, Annette smirked, her hair still unkempt. Would this sort of world have been better? She couldn’t believe herself. “When will I learn when to give up?” It was a strange dream, Shin pondered as he looked up at the now-familiar ceiling of his room in Rüstkammer base. Rooms given to company officers— in other words, people like Shin—in this base were plain and had minimal furnishings. But this was a new base, and so everything was built firmly, the very image of sturdy quality. Compared with the Eighty-Sixth Sector’s barracks—which was weatherbeaten and rickety enough to care little for drafts and roof leaks and hardly Page 221 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
sheltered them from the elements—this place looked almost luxurious. So luxurious, in fact, that when he was first stationed here, Shin couldn’t quite get used to the place and felt uncomfortable. Looking back on it now, his heart still couldn’t leave the battlefield. It still couldn’t leave the Eighty-Sixth Sector. And yet he was getting used to looking at this ceiling. Getting used to this room. By now, he didn’t feel reluctant to wish for happiness, for the future he used to dread. Yes, at some point, the battlefield of the Eighty-Sixth Sector had suddenly started feeling awfully distant to him. So to dream of an illusion of peaceful days in the Republic, of memories that had long since faded… In that world, none of his comrades would have had to die. Neither would his parents and brother. And that thought alone made his heart throb with pain. “I don’t want to say that about this world… Not now.” No longer could he say that the people in this world, and all his myriad encounters, would have been better off relegated to oblivion. He was now able to believe that he couldn’t carelessly turn his back on the world…no matter how cruel and unforgiving it might be. Page 222 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
AFTERWORD Welcome back, one and all, to the hell of zero casualties! Hello, everyone, this is Asato Asato, and this was the short story– collection volume. The central work this time was the story of Shin’s past, Fragmental Neoteny, which details his exploits in the Eighty-Sixth Sector. During its publication on Kakuyomu, Fragmental Neoteny was met with reviews full of screams of agony. Now the readers of the print volumes can join in on all the fun and the screaming! In addition, we had The Simple Days of Triage Black Tag, which told of a certain day in the Spearhead squadron’s life from Kujo’s perspective; The Banks of the Lethe, the story of Shin’s group on their merry journey to the hereafter; and Fido, a story about the true identity of that cute friend of Shin’s! Do look forward to reading those. Also, the manga versions of Run Through the Battlefront (illustrated by Hakuya Yamasaki, published in Manga UP!) and Fragmental Neoteny (illustrated by Takuya Shinjou, published in Monthly Comic Alive) have begun serialization. Please check them out! Now, for some thanks. To the editors in charge of me, Kiyose and Tsuchiya. You told me to write whatever I liked, and never once did you order me to stop. Thank you so much. To Shirabii, the art of twelve-year-old Shin on the cover was so adorable it made me feel terribly guilty for all the awful things I put him through in the story… To I-IV. If you didn’t upload that art of Fido dancing to Twitter, I wouldn’t have written the extra chapter where Shin names Fido! Page 223 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
To Yoshihara. The front- and back-cover illustrations for Volume 3, showing the Nouzen siblings’ contrast, was very heartrending. To Somemiya, Lena and the Eighty-Six’s battles (be it the snowball fight, the exams, or New Year’s) were very heartwarming. To Yamasaki, your depictions of both large armies clashing and the mental state of the characters shook my heart. To Shinjou. The way you render firing at point-blank range and each detail leading up to it is just too cool… To Director Ishii. Every episode of the anime is thirty minutes of flawlessness. Every week, I could utter amazed wows while watching your works. And to you, who picked up this book. Thank you so, so much. Shin’s seven-year battle with the Legion, which has been going on since he was eleven years old, will finally begin approaching its conclusion starting with the next volume. In any case, I hope that for even a short moment, I could take you to the battlefield where one young child soldier transformed into the eastern front’s Headless Reaper. To where that Headless Reaper and his comrades spent their days. Music playing while writing this afterword: “Ranse Eroica” by ALI PROJECT Page 224 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com
Thank you for buying this ebook, published by Yen On. To get news about the latest manga, graphic novels, and light novels from Yen Press, along with special offers and exclusive content, sign up for the Yen Press newsletter. Sign Up Or visit us at www.yenpress.com/booklink Page 225 Goldenagato | mp4directs.com